Cover 7 | Sunday A daily NFL destination that provides in-depth analysis of football’s biggest stories. Each Sunday, three of The Athletic’s NFL writers react to the biggest news, plays and performances from the day’s games.
A week after the New England Patriots suffered the worst loss of Bill Belichick’s head-coaching career against the Cowboys (38-3), they nearly matched it in Sunday’s 34-0 loss to the New Orleans Saints. Things went from bad to worse for quarterback Mac Jones, who threw a pair of interceptions for the second straight game and was benched in the fourth quarter.
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In Pittsburgh, the Steelers rallied to beat the Baltimore Ravens 17-10 thanks to a host of Baltimore miscues including some uncharacteristic drops by the Ravens’ receivers, a blocked punt and a pair of game-changing turnovers.
The late window featured the Bengals finding their offensive rhythm including a record-breaking day from Ja’Marr Chase and the Eagles grinding out a win over the Rams to improve to 5-0 for the second straight season.
The Athletic NFL writers Vic Tafur, Ted Nguyen and Dan Pompei share their thoughts on Sunday’s top headlines.
Read more: What we learned in NFL Week 5: Lions legitimately good, Patriots worst team in football?
Patriots QB Mac Jones threw his NFL-high third pick-six of the season in the first quarter Sunday against the Saints and it was just the start of another dreadful day for the New England passer. Jones finished 12-of-22 for 110 yards, zero touchdowns and two interceptions and was replaced by Bailey Zappe in the fourth quarter. Is it time for the Patriots to start Zappe (or another QB)? And should the decision impact head coach Bill Belichick’s job security in New England?
Dan Pompei: We don’t know if Zappe can improve the Patriots significantly. We do know that they have not been close to good enough with Jones. The Patriots are 1-4 and their season is slipping away. They need a quarterback change to create a spark if for no other reason. The locker room has to have doubts about Jones at this point. Belichick’s job security probably should be determined by one thing, as every coach’s job security should be – whether or not he is the best person to lead the team in 2024 and beyond. Even the greatest coach in history has a shelf life, but the Patriots may be best served in the hands of the coach who is responsible for their six Lombardis.
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Ted Nguyen: Jones has looked spooked since the Cowboys game. He’s feeling and looking at the pass rush even when he has protection and he’s not seeing open receivers. He’s in a serious slump right now. I think he should be allowed to play through it unless they believe Zappe has a chance to develop into a starter-level quarterback. We’ve seen better days from Jones so I think he can eventually get back to a baseline level of play — I’m not sure that’s enough for New England to look for an upgrade in the offseason. To me, Belichick gets at least another three-year pass to figure things out based on his incredible success.
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Vic Tafur: There have been whispers about Belichick losing his fastball for a while now, and people should be screaming it from the rooftops after the Patriots were shut out by the Saints at home. It probably doesn’t matter who plays quarterback at this point, as New England has no offensive weapons. The only way Belichick keeps his job now is if he was really tanking for Caleb Williams the whole time. The Patriots had some big injuries on defense last week, which puts even more pressure on the offense. Or less, right? Tank for Caleb or else Belichick is just getting ready for a semi-retirement gig advising Josh McDaniels in Las Vegas.
Read more: How did the Patriots end up with the NFL’s worst offense? A position by position breakdown
The Eagles hung on for a 23-14 win over the Rams on Sunday in a game made closer by Philadelphia’s missed chances on offense. The Eagles went 2-for-6 in the red zone against L.A. (33.3%) and are now 4-for-13 on red-zone drives over their last three games (37.8%). Minor blip for Philadelphia or a real concern worth monitoring?
Pompei: The Eagles aren’t perfect, but they are undefeated. They have fewer imperfections than most teams and lots of time to correct them. They also have the talent to be better in the red zone — a quarterback who can make tight-window throws, receivers who can win contested balls, a running game to keep defenses off balance and an offensive line that is elite. Last season the Eagles had the third-best touchdown percentage in the red zone. The expectation is they will iron out their deficiencies.
Nguyen: I think offensive coordinators can affect red zone efficiency and losing Shane Steichen hurts. The Colts, with a much less talented offense than the Eagles, have improved their red zone efficiency from 29th to 16th with Steichen as head coach. Philadelphia, with largely the same group from 2022, has fallen from third to 27th – that’s a huge drop. I think new Eagles offensive coordinator Brian Johnson will ultimately figure things out. This is his first season calling plays in the league and a learning curve is expected. It’s definitely a situation to monitor, but Philadelphia has a bruising offensive line, an athletic quarterback who runs with power, and two big targets (Dallas Goedert and A.J. Brown). They should be better.
Tafur: As long as they continue to win games while sleepwalking on offense, I don’t think the Eagles are going to be concerned. Brown made some big plays while Jalen Hurts continues to carry fantasy teams, so the only question mark is whether their running game will be good enough when the playoffs start. It should be, considering D’Andre Swift and Kenneth Gainwell are a solid duo, the Eagles have an automatic short-yardage rugby-style play and their new offensive coordinator is still getting his feet wet.
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Colts rookie QB Anthony Richardson left Sunday’s game against the Titans in the second quarter with a shoulder injury, the third time in four games Richardson has played this season that he’s had to leave early with an injury. Is this trend more a case of Indianapolis too often putting its QB in harm’s way or is it on Richardson to adjust his approach to avoid taking so many hits?
Pompei: Some of what has happened to Richardson probably is bad luck. He hasn’t taken more hits than others who have avoided injuries. Then again, he may be prone to injury. But no quarterback can survive long-term unless he can defeat defenses from the pocket and tries to run only if he has no passing options. Richardson is a work in progress in that regard, as many young quarterbacks with running ability are. Pocket presence and awareness, as well as discipline with taking off, will be critical to his success as well as his well-being.
Nguyen: Richardson definitely needs to learn how to avoid hits. The option needs to be a part of his game — not utilizing his athletic ability is a waste — but he’s also been much further ahead as a passer than most though. He’s at a level where I think they can cut down on the option when he does return and use this season to really develop him as a passer. The Indianapolis coaching staff has to actively work with him on taking fewer hits before they return to the option game. Hopefully, Richardson will be back at some point this season because he’s made so much progress already. This team is winning games, but the ultimate goal of this season is to set up Richardson for the future. A high-volume option attack can wait and he has to prove that he can learn to keep himself safe.
Tafur: Richardson is a big target and is at risk just by the nature of his playing style. The Colts knew that when they drafted him, and they can’t ask him to change the way he plays — he is too dynamic with his legs and arm, and he will learn some restraint with experience. In the meantime, backup QB Gardner Minshew is a nice security blanket for the Colts staff. The team has shown it can win games with him and its defense, and now gets running back Jonathan Taylor back.
The Bengals pulled away to beat the Cardinals 34-20 on Sunday behind Joe Burrow’s best game of the season and a record-breaking day from Ja’Marr Chase (franchise-record 15 receptions including three touchdowns). The Jets ran for a season-high 234 yards and got another strong showing from their defense including a game-clinching strip-sack in a 31-21 win over the Broncos. Which was the more significant development moving forward: The Bengals’ offense finally breaking through or the Jets winning without needing much from Zach Wilson?
Pompei: If Burrow continues to throw for 300-plus yards and three touchdowns per game, the Bengals are back. And they might be as good as almost any team in the NFL. Certainly, they have more potential to be better than they have been than any team. That doesn’t diminish what the Jets did. Their hopes to be a contender remain. If Zach Wilson doesn’t lose games and the running game and defense do what they did Sunday, the Jets should be playing meaningful games in December even if Aaron Rodgers remains on the sideline. The temptation is to diminish what New York did Sunday because it was against the Broncos. But don’t forget the Jets beat the Bills. And they have a significant measuring stick next week against the Eagles.
Nguyen: I think the Bengals offense finally breaking through is significant because if Burrow is getting back to form, that makes Cincinnati real contenders. He looked more spry than he has at any point this season and the Bengals didn’t have receiver Tee Higgins today who was out with a rib injury. The Cardinals have been feisty, but their defense isn’t very good. If the Bengals can beat the Seahawks next week, they have a bye week to get healthy. Zach Wilson has looked improved and that’s encouraging but we’ll have to see a lot more than 199 yards, zero touchdowns and one INT against the worst defense in the league before we start buying stock.
Tafur: Well, the Broncos stink and the Cardinals do not. So the Bengals’ win over the Cardinals is more significant, and Chase showed that he really is always open. Burrow looked more comfortable playing with his bad calf and getting Higgins back will help. I still think the Bengals could lean more on running back Joe Mixon. He was solid today with 81 yards rushing. As for the Jets, the injury to OL Alijah Vera-Tucker could be a big one and they actually lose Sunday if Denver QB Russell Wilson had any of his pocket awareness left from his younger days. Russ is cooked.
A week after securing a statement win against the Dolphins, the Bills fell to the Jaguars 25-20 in London in a game that saw Buffalo’s late rally come up short and two more defensive starters go down with injuries – LB Matt Milano (knee) and DT DaQuan Jones (pectoral). What’s the Bills’ bigger concern right now: Buffalo’s slow start on offense Sunday or the mounting injuries on defense?
Pompei: Given the talent, the offense should come around. Whether or not the defense can absorb the injuries is a concern. The offense has been pretty solid for Buffalo before Sunday. If the Bills are going to be the kind of elite team many think they can be, they will need to win games with their defense. Getting Von Miller back is significant, but they will miss Tra’Davious White’s cover ability. If Milano’s absence is long term as well as White’s, the defense will be compromised. Milano has been as valuable as any of their defenders in the early part of the season. He’s also become one of football’s best off-the-ball linebackers.
Nguyen: The injuries are definitely the biggest concern. You can sort of excuse the slow start to the international game and the offense will be fine as long as Josh Allen is healthy. But the defense just potentially lost two of its best defenders long term. Milano is a top-three linebacker in my eyes and one of the main reasons the Bills can live in sub-personnel and light boxes without getting consistently run on. Buffalo still has a good defensive line and it will get better as Miller gets acclimated but Milano is so valuable. The Bills can win shootouts but their defense was playing at such a high level.
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Tafur: It was a classic letdown game, traveling to London after shutting down the high-powered Dolphins in a division game. The Bills defensive line was underrated and now gets Miller back, so I think they could have weathered that storm if Milano’s injury was not long term. Milano is one of the most underrated players in the league. And the offense got going once it slept through the first half. So I am not too worried about the Bills’ defense or offense. They are still one of the six teams that can win the Super Bowl.
In perhaps the most strange game of the 1 p.m ET window, the Steelers rallied to beat the Ravens with the help of multiple Baltimore miscues. Pittsburgh blocked a punt that resulted in a safety, picked off Lamar Jackson and forced a game-sealing Jackson fumble — all in the second half — en route to securing the 17-10 win. The whole AFC North could be separated by a single game by the end of Week 5. Who is your current favorite to win the division and why?
Pompei: Any of the four teams can win this division, including the Bengals. Maybe especially the Bengals if Joe Burrow gets healthy. But for now, the Ravens, with a 2-1 record against North opponents, still look like the best. It was a bad loss to the Steelers, no question, but not a completely unexpected one given the nature of the rivalry. Baltimore had a really bad, out-of-character day offensively but remains tied for first in the division. There is a lot of football to be played, and this division surely will have many swings in power before the champion is decided — probably in the last week of the season.
Nguyen: The Ravens are the favorites and should have won against the Steelers by multiple touchdowns. I’ve never seen receivers let down a quarterback like they did Jackson in this game. And these weren’t just small drops. These were downfield, explosive passes that were in their hands. Zay Flowers even tripped on what looked like it could have been a long touchdown. The Ravens are just getting healthy, they have an elite defense and the receivers will improve. The Ravens are the team to beat.
Tafur: It’s still the Ravens. I am going to assume that their receivers don’t drop as many passes — Zay Flowers has so much upside — and that Lamar Jackson is not going to make terrible passes in the red zone. Jackson was doing so much better in that area under new offensive coordinator Todd Monken before Sunday. Jackson may have set a career high for frustrated helmet slams in the loss to the Steelers. I don’t know how Pittsburgh does it. The Steelers had no business beating the Browns or the Ravens, but here they are. Give Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett credit, I don’t see it in terms of his skill set, but he made some nice throws down the stretch.
GO DEEPER
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(Top photo of Mac Jones: Winslow Townson / Getty Images)
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